My Grandfather, Lyman Dwight Wooster took these color slides of Kansas wildflowers during the late 1940’s and most of the 1950’s. He used slow film in cameras with slow lens speeds. Many of these color slides were taken outdoors in Kansas wind. His results are astounding!

Lyman was born July 15, 1884 in Greely, Colorado. He was educated in the public schools of Eureka and Emporia Kansas, received a Bachelor of Arts from Emporia Normal School, a Masters degree in Philosophy from the University of Wisconsin and Doctors degree in Philosophy from Stanford University. His hobbies were photography and nature studies.

He authored “A History of Fort Hays Kansas State College 1902 to 1961” and the following is taken from my copy,  number 17 of a limited edition of three hundred signed copies, signed by M.C. Cunningham, then president of the college.

President Wooster reached the retirement age for Administrative Officers in the summer of 1949 and was retired by the Board of Regents with the title of President Emeritus. Someone has said “Retirement is a misnomer for Doctor Wooster’s life after 1949”. It was at this time that the principles of “responsible living”,  of which he was such an ardent advocate, became so evident in his own life.

On the campus he returned to the Science division and taught classes in Geology. His extracurricular activities were many. His book, The History of Fort Hays Kansas State College is evidence of his interest in recording  and preserving for others, the story of the founding and development of the college where he spent his adult lifetime.

He was through and through a western man. In the last few years of his life he served as the Executive secretary of the Western Kansas Development Association  and as Editor of its publication,  “The West Kansan”. His activities in this connection were channeled in a direction to help others see, in his words, “Western Kansas, a good place to live and work,” a maxim which he carried at the top of the front page. Because of his interest in, his enthusiasm for, and his services to this area, it is fitting to refer to him as “The West Kansan”.

HIS COLOR PHOTOGRAPHIC SLIDES OF KANSAS WILDFLOWERS, sunsets, clouds and other phases of
Western Kansas beauty were shared for the enjoyment of many, and they created an appreciation of the beauty of the western plains,  that for others turned what might have been  drab prairie into a place with a beauty peculiarly its own.

I remember him loving being outdoors and knowing every animal, plant, rock or whatever I asked him. We fished, hunted, bird counted, hiked, climbed mountains and helped Dr. George Sternberg dig fossils. A fish within a fish that is displayed in a museum named for Dr. Sternberg,  located in Hays,  Kansas is pictured on this page. I was likely a pest but was allowed to mix plaster, dust around the bones with a very small brush or apply varnish to preserve  them.

Granddad  had two light meters hung around his neck and poked them at anything near him,  wherever we were and carried his camera bag so he could capture any image he wanted.  He developed many of his own negatives and the odors of developer and fixer chemicals are still vivid. He was a fun babysitter and took me most places he went. I spent many days and nights with him in Hays until at age 13, girls became more important to me.

His daughter,  Cynthia Witwer preserved  these slides unseen in her basement until she gave them to me in the early 2000’s and made me  promise not to return them.

I, John Christian Woelk III (Chris),  scanned the slides with a film scanner and used various versions of Photoshop to restore their original color and remove some dust spots. Playing around with said Photoshop,  I have taken the liberty to push some beyond “natural” and add an artistic touch. Those can be seen in the Woelk Work galleries. I take pictures but am more comfortable manipulating the work of better photographers.

My friend Tim Orrick of the Orrick Law Group in Overland Park,  Kansas encouraged me to display these images on the Internet. He displays some printed copies in his office on the 2nd floor of the Metcalf Bank,  located at the intersection of Quivera and College in Overland Park, Kansas.